3 months post op. Things are getting worse??

[lifter88]

Had my revision surgery 3 months ago.

The first month and half i was wearing the compression garments pretty much 24/7 and when i did take them off, my chest was pretty condensed from being so wrapped up (it looked flat and i was so happy!).

2 months after surgery i have starting lifting weights again (heavy! which was recommended in order to build up my chest). Now when im wearing an under shirt my nipples stick out a little bit, and when i take my shirt off and look in the mirror (or down at my chest) my nipples seem a little puffy. Even if i run my hand down my pec i can feel where the nipple bumps out a bit. This puffiness is an improvement compared to what i used to have, but it's heart breaking to have seen my chest so nice in between compression wrappings, to now having "puffy nipples", again.

I'm worried that it's not swelling but either growth, or how my chest is going to look permanently.... The scars have healed up nicely, and im trying to lose some body fat and build my chest up but it's very disappointing at the moment

If i flex my chest and feel around i have no hard masses, but do have a tad bit of scar tissue at the bottom of the nipple where the incision was made. I don't think the scar is causing the puffiness, it seems more like excess of fat. I had a top notch surgeon, and like i said, it was great but seems to have gotten worse during the past few weeks!

Did anyone else go through this during the healing process???

[Dr. Elliot Jacobs]

What you are describing is not uncommon.  The body reacts to surgery by healing with scar tissue -- and sometimes the body "overdoes it" and produces more scar tissue than is necessary.

Would suggest you return to your surgeon for an evaluation.  He may opt to continue to observe -- for scar tissue does tend to buildup and then diminish somewhat by itself.  Or, he may want to inject some medication (a good steroid) to help melt away some of the scar tissue.

Dr Jacobs

[nipplevision]

I had the same experience post op.
In the beginning (let's say first 2-3 weeks) everything looked fine. Nipples were flat and I was happy.
After a while nipples got puffy again and I assumed scar tissue was causing this. Had some injections (Kenalog) which destroyed the tissue but still the puffiness remained... Now 1 1/2 years after surgery, situation is exactly as pre op... Am considering revision with another surgeon.
As the above poster suggests, you can wait some more, but if nothing changes after 12 months, consider taking other steps.
Good luck, I know it sucks!